Citizen Radio recently interviewed professor Noam Chomsky about the War on Drugs, religion, and what makes him happy.

Called "arguably the most important intellectual alive" by the New York Times, Noam Chomsky is also known as a political activist.

In the 1966 essay, "The Responsibility of Intellectuals," Chomsky challenged intellectuals "to speak the truth and expose lies," and he carried his protests beyond the printed page: he became a tax resister and he was arrested in 1967 at the Pentagon while protesting military involvement in Southeast Asia.

Chomsky's criticism of U.S. governmental policies has continued unabated since that time. In Deterring Democracy and in other books he has focused on trade and economic issues and accuses the Government of being a "rogue superpower."

"I'm a citizen of the United States," says Chomsky, "and I have a share of responsibility for what it does."

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Citizen Radio interviews author, activist, and former Economic Hit Man, John Perkins, for the full hour!

As an EHM (Economic Hit Man), Perkins's job was to convince Third World countries to accept enormous loans for infrastructure development—loans that were much larger than needed—and to guarantee that the development projects were contracted to U.S. corporations like Halliburton and Bechtel.

Once these countries were saddled with huge debts, the U.S. government and the international aid agencies allied with it were able to control these economies and to ensure that oil and other resources were channeled to serve the interests of building a global empire.

Perkins is the author of the New York Times bestseller, Confessions of an Economic Hit Man, and the new book, Hoodwinked: An Economic Hit Man Reveals Why the World Financial Markets Imploded--and What We Need to Do to Remake Them. Buy the book here: (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307589927?ie=UTF8&tag=dreamchange-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0307589927).

Also check out Perkins' website (http://www.johnperkins.org/) and add him on Twitter (http://twitter.com/economic_hitman).

He joins Citizen Radio for the full hour to discuss his job as an EHM, US-led assassinations, his accurate predictions that Iceland's economy would collapse, the dangers of hyper-Capitalism and global Corporatism (including how America's domestic banks, the IMF, and The World Bank enslave people with debt,) and the EHMs' treatment of Iran, Bolivia, and Venezuela.

Perkins shares the success stories of people fighting corporate takeovers like the Bolivians' fight with Bechtel, the huge corporation that privatized Bolivia’s water supply, the lawsuit Ecuadorians have filed against Texaco, which has since been purchased by Chevron, and Latin and South America's social revolutions that reject predatory Capitalism.

Finally, Perkins explains why government regulation is important, how Obama's economic team are "scum," China's role in the new world, and what citizens can do to make Capitalism more egalitarian and humane.

For the next two weeks, BTR will air the very best of Citizen Radio's interviews, including chats with Noam Chomsky and Janeane Garofalo. Allison and Jamie will be recording new introductions – including the latest news – so be sure to tune in over the holidays! Think of Citizen Radio as an escape from your awful extended family.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

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Citizen Radio discusses the Copenhagen protests. Hundreds of protesters have been arrested, beaten, and tear gassed by the police, who have also been using "kettling," i.e. penning protesters as a form of soft censorship. (http://trueslant.com/allisonkilkenny/2009/12/16/copenhagen-climate-activists-reclaim-power/)

These "penned protesters" sometimes lash out at police when they feel they have been marginalized, suppressed, and have no other means of communicating their distress to the world. Jamie talks about how this kind of police-made radicalization is similar to the radicalized Iraqis and Afghans, who fight against the occupying US forces.

Next, a discussion about Tariq Ali's wonderful speech on "President Obama's Afghan-Pak Syndrome":http://www.democracynow.org/blog/2009/12/7/tariq_ali_obamas_afghan_pak_syndrome. The two excuses for intervention in Afghanistan and Pakistan is to protect Pakistan’s nukes, and women, from the Taliban. Citizen Radio explains why these excuses range from the disingenuous to the untrue.

Why do the terrorists hate us? In part, they may not approve of America's hypocritical nature and imperialist agenda. Example: "Gitmo North," a new "supermax" facility in Thomson, Illinois, that will be the new home of transferred prisoners Guantanamo. None of those moved to Thomson will receive a trial in a real American court, and some will not be charged with any crime at all. (http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/2009/12/15/gitmo/index.html). Perhaps holding potentially innocent, Muslim men for years without trial pisses off the Iraqis and Afghans that have yet to be arrested.

If that doesn’t piss 'em off, this sure will: The Supreme Court has refused to hear a suit seeking accountability for Guantanamo torture. SCOTUS received an assist from the Obama White House, which had asked the court not to hear the case. (http://trueslant.com/allisonkilkenny/2009/12/15/supreme-court-rules-torture-is-a-foreseeable-consequence/) Instead of holding prisoners for years without trial in Cuba, the US will now do it in America's heartland. This looks (to put it mildly) bad to Muslims, and could result in catastrophic blowback.

A poll from American Progress shows that vast majorities of climate science skeptics are men. They are more likely than average to be high income, well-educated, white men... much more likely to be very conservative Republicans... strongly endorse individualistic values, opposing any form of government intervention, anti-egalitarian, and almost universally prefer economic growth over environmental protection... have a specialized media diet, with a higher than average preference for media sources that reflect their own political point of view." Or as Digby describes them: Highly educated, wealthy, Randian Fox viewers.Citizen Radio discusses the Selfish Republican Syndrome, which emphasizes the role of the individual, selfishness, and paranoia, all thoroughly unnatural traits. A March issue of The New Yorker describes how primates, including humans, are highly social creatures that rely on each other for support, help, and love. (http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/03/30/090330fa_fact_gawande)

Now for some good news: The D.C. Council voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to legalize same-sex marriage in the District, a key step in a process that could enable gay couples to marry in the nation's capital by the spring. We’ll have to see if the Catholic Church goes through with its promise to stop feeding homeless people as a form of anti-gay marriage protest. (http://trueslant.com/allisonkilkenny/2009/11/12/catholic-church-threatens-to-stop-feeding-homeless-over-gay-marriage/)

And in "This is so fucked we really don't need to comment on it news:" The U.S. gave up billions in tax money in a deal for Citigroup's bailout repayment. The federal government quietly agreed to allow Citigroup to retain billions of dollars in potential tax payments as part of the deal announced this week to wean the company from the massive taxpayer bailout that helped it survive the financial crisis.

Allison and Jamie discuss Citigroup's influence in the Obama White House as described by Matt Taibbi in his controversial new Rolling Stone feature: (http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/31234647/obamas_big_sellout/print)

The Washington Post reports that the surge of 30,000 U.S. troops into Afghanistan could be accompanied by a surge of up to 56,000 contractors.

Lastly, Ben Bernanke is the Time Man of the Year. Seriously.

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On this week's Citizen Radio: Jamie lashes out at United Airlines in a very unbiased, journalistic fashion.

Some Progressives are mad at Matt Taibbi for his latest article in Rolling Stone. Taibbi has dared to point out the obvious: The president has packed his economic team with Wall Street insiders intent on turning the bailout into an all-out giveaway. Read it here:http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/31234647/obamas_big_sellout/print. Allison argues the Progressives are experiencing the stages of grief, and they appear to be stuck in the "denial" stage.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates had kind of a rough trip to Afghanistan and Iraq. Actually, it was a total disaster. Citizen Radio recounts the debacle that took place, including the Iraqi PM standing up Gates, and Karzai admitting Afghans would not be able to pay for their own security forces until 2024.

The media is once again focusing on shiny things that don't matter. This times, they're super pissed a black, rich athlete slept with an army of blonde women. Allison recounts the media circus here:http://trueslant.com/allisonkilkenny/2009/12/14/things-that-are-more-interesting-than-tiger-woods-sleeping-with-blonde-women/, and all the actually important stories that aren't being reported because of the media's fixation on Tiger's penis.

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Citizen Radio welcomes the cast, director, and producer of the hilarious new comedy, Mystery Team (http://www.mysteryteam-movie.com/,) which just premiered at Sundance to rave reviews. This is the anti-corporate comedy – no big studies, no big promotion budget – just awesome comedy. Support this film instead of seeing American Pie 46 or another awful Michael Bay "film."

The cast of Mystery Team is Derrick Comedy (http://www.derrickcomedy.com/) (Dominic Dierkes, Donald Glover, and DC Pierson). They, along with the director and producer of the film, discuss comedy (improv versus stand-up) and the importance of the artistic vision.

Movie plot: Three naive kid detectives, The Mystery Team, are about to graduate from high school, but they continue to bust children for pint-sized crimes despite everyone's insistence that they grow up. To prove to themselves and the town, at large, that they can be "real detectives", they take it upon themselves to solve a double homicide.

If you haven't already, you should definitely check out this film: (http://www.mysteryteam-movie.com/.) Not playing in your city? Demand your local theaters show Mystery Team:http://eventful.com/performers/mystery-team-/P0-001-000213803-2/demand. Help support independent comedy and film!

Derrick Comedy Bios:

Dominic Dierkes has been performing at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre (UCB) since 2003 where he teaches sketch and improvises with the Harold Team The Law Firm. He was a founding member of the sketch comedy troupe Wicked Wicked Hammerkatz with whom he won an ECNY Award for Best Sketch Group in 2005.

Donald Glover is best known for his work as the jock, Troy, on the NBC show Community alongside Joel McHale and Chevy Chase. Glover has also been a writer for the award-winning NBC series 30 Rock. He was nominated for the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Comedy Series at the February 2009 ceremony for his work on the third season of 30 Rock.

DC Pierson is also a director and performer for the UCB, and he is the author of "The Boy Who Couldn't Sleep and Never Had To," a wildly original and hilarious debut novel about the typical high school experience: the homework, the awkwardness, and the mutant creatures from another galaxy. (http://www.amazon.com/Couldnt-Sleep-Never-Vintage-Contemporaries/dp/0307474615/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1255840042&sr=8-1)

The director and editor of Mystery Team is Dan Eckman, who has been writing, producing, directing, and editing short films since the age of 15 and whose work has been screened at numerous film festivals across the country. Before making Mystery Team, he was the Video Production Director for Blue Man Group where his work was seen on the 57th Primetime Emmy Awards, the 2005 Billboard Music Awards, on PBS, at Universal Orlando and in the Boston Children's Museum, among others.

Mystery Team's producer, Meggie McFadden, has produced dozens of films over the past 6 years, including the 2006 short film, Checkout, which won the Best College Short at the HBO US Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen.

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Citizen Radio welcomes special guest, Susan Burke! Burke serves as lead counsel in five actions brought on behalf of the Abu Ghraib torture victims. The actions are against CACI and L-3, whose employees served as translators or interrogators and participated in torture. She also serves as lead counsel against Blackwater's slaughter of innocent civilians in Iraq's Nissoor Square.

Burke talks about how private mercenaries are a way for the government to "buy their way out of a draft," the lack of accountability in Iraq and Afghanistan, Obama's comments that we need to look forward and not backward, the Justice Department's behavior under President Obama, how torture hurts America, and what citizens can do to pressure the US government into ending its use of Blackwater and private mercenaries.

Allison and Jamie discuss Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD,) including the under-reported story of veteran Joshua Hunter, who recently stabbed his two army buddies to death in NY.

Citizen Radio has a brief follow-up to the anti-gay legislation being considered in Uganda. An Episcopal bishop is now publicly opposing the measure.

Sarah Palin has managed to outdo herself again. According to her father, Palin left college in Hawaii – not because she got distracted by the sunlight – but because she didn't care for all the Asians and Pacific Islanders walking around. Allison and Jamie perform the totally real, 100% accurate reenactment of Sarah Palin's arrival in Hawaii.

Citizen Radio discusses Obama's West Point speech, and the similar rhetoric being used during the Afghanistan and Iraq debates. The US has destabilized Afghanistan, propped up a highly corrupt government, including high-ranking officials accused of murder and rape, and now has the audacity to claim Afghanistan will not get anymore "blank checks."

Allison and Jamie also discuss media bias and war. A new study shows that newspapers, by far, favor pro-war columnists over anti-war writers.

Next, a discussion about why Capitalism and Imperialism – two ideologies that haven't been working too well lately -- are permitted to go on unexamined by the hegemonic minority.

Citizen Radio apologizes for being too hard Meet The Press the other day by fussing that MTP rarely includes leftist voices on its panels. Now, Allison and Jamie understand that the producers of the longest-running television show in worldwide broadcasting history can't include leftist perspectives because they have to create a "safe space" for the views of people like pastor Rick Warren, who recently refused to condemn the idea of a death penalty for gays in Uganda, and who was a recent guest on MTP.

In the second half, a discussion about the phenomenon of the "Christian side-hug," which you should watch immediately on Youtube if you have not already done so by now. Some Christians are teaching young people not to hug normally because of the potential for indecent groin contact. The solution is to think: HWJH: How Would Jesus Hug? Answer: The Lord sayeth: Gimmie that Christian side-hug.

Lastly, Jamie and Erik Prince, the CEO of Blackwater, both love the film "Taken." Jamie tries to defend this reality.

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Citizen Radio welcomes very special guest, Noam Chomsky, the man the New York Times calls the most important intellectual alive.

First up, the Unfunny But Totally Real Headlines: learn about the world, while sitting on your ass, and feel like you're actually doing something. You're going to want to ADD out, but don't. It’s only two-minutes, and then you can sound smart to your apathetic, hipster douchebag friends.

Next, Allison and Jamie talk about Invictus, the latest "White Person Saves Minorities" film brought to us by Clint Eastwood. A very blonde Matt Damon stars in the film, which shows us how rugby ended apartheid.

Most of you have probably heard about the White House party crashers by now -- two wannabe reality television nobodies wandered into President Obama's shindig, and now the media is inexplicably pursuing the story with bloodthirsty gusto. Citizen Radio talks about the media’s bizarre priorities, and how they pursue little criminals, while the big criminals get away.

In the second half of the show, Chomsky joins Citizen Radio to discuss Afghanistan, the Taliban, western imperialism, Khalid Sheikh Mohammad, why it's a mistake to mock right-wing protesters, healthcare, corporations, Iran, Israel, Hamas, Capitalism, and democracy.